From my youth, sampling a taste of Dad’s home brew or the neighbour’s birch sap wine, I developed an inquisitive pallet and I’m always looking for the right drink at the right time. Drinks are an important aspect of any social occasion and I love choosing them for the right meal or situation.

Wine is my main love and it has grown from my teenage years. At university I was pleased that my friends shared my idea that drinking nicer wine was probably better than buying the cheap and nasty stuff, that floated round the student parties. I’m please to say that has remained true today!

Food and wine matching is something I’ve always been fascinated by and over the last few years I’ve been able to develop this by directing the ‘Saturday Kitchen Live’ wine content. Every week I learn a little bit more about grapes, regions, blends, prices and how wines can (or don’t!) work with food. I’ve also been recommending a few wines to partner chef recipes at Cactus Kitchens cookery school.

But let’s not forget my passion for cider and gin (not necessarily in the same glass)… So much to talk about! Here I want to let you know what I’ve been drinking and give you a few ideas whether with or without food. Let’s open some bottles…